UFC 141 Prelims: Pearson Halts Assuncao’s Streak

“The Ultimate Fighter” Season 9 winner Ross
Pearson made a successful debut at 145 pounds, as he captured a
unanimous decision from Junior
Assuncao at UFC
141 “Lesnar vs. Overeem” on Friday at the MGM Grand Garden
Arena in Las Vegas. All three cageside judges scored it for Pearson
(13-5, 5-2 UFC): 29-28, 29-28 and 30-27.

The defeat snapped Assuncao’s seven-fight winning streak.

Pearson forced the issue throughout the 15-minute encounter and
answered takedowns from Assuncao with leg kicks, knees and
counterstrikes. The 27-year-old Brit seemed to turn the tide in the
second round, when he wobbled Assuncao (13-5, 2-3 UFC) with a left
jab, swarmed and delivered an exquisite trip takedown of his
own.

Assuncao, to his credit, never went away. He struck for a pair of
takedowns in the third round, only to be answered by a head kick
and knee from Pearson, who won for the second time in three
outings.

Takedowns Push Castillo Past
Njokuani

Team Alpha Male representative Danny
Castillo weathered his standup exchanges with muay Thai
practitioner Anthony
Njokuani, scored with repeated takedowns and captured a hotly
contested split decision in a competitive preliminary lightweight
affair. All three cageside judges scored it 29-28, two of them in
favor of Castillo (13-4, 3-1 UFC).

A late replacement for the injured Ramsey
Nijem, Castillo secured multiple takedowns in all three rounds
and controlled extended stretches of the match from the waistlock
position. Clearly the more polished standup fighter, Njokuani
established himself in the second round with beautiful knees from
the clinch, a standing elbow and a counter right hook that put
Castillo on one knee.

Njokuani (14-6, 1 NC, 1-2 UFC), a three-time “Knockout of the
Night” award winner in the WEC, drilled Castillo with various
strikes -- left hooks, low kicks and a flying knee among them -- in
round three but had trouble staying upright. That ultimately cost
him the fight.

Dong Hyun
Kim File Photo

Kim cruised by Pierson.

Kim Outduels Pierson at
170

South Korean judoka Dong Hyun
Kim blended clean standup with timely takedowns in earning a
unanimous decision from Sean Pierson
in a preliminary welterweight matchup. All three cageside judges
scored it 30-27 in Kim’s favor, as he won for the fourth time in
five appearances.

A competitive first round gave way to a far more one-sided final 10
minutes. Kim countered Pierson (11-6, 1-2 UFC) effectively and
jarred him with a front kick late in round two. More low kicks and
jabs followed in the third period, while Kim mixed in takedowns and
a Superman punch, cementing his latest victory.

Volkmann Wins Fifth Straight

A heavy diet of takedowns, top control and ground-and-pound carried
Jacob
Volkmann to a unanimous verdict over “The Ultimate Fighter”
Season 8 winner Efrain
Escudero in an undercard battle at 155 pounds. Volkmann (14-2,
5-2 UFC) swept the scorecards by identical 29-28 counts, as the
three-time NCAA All-American wrestler extended his current winning
streak to five fights.

Volkmann, a practicing chiropractor in his native Minnesota, kept
Escudero (18-4, 3-3 UFC) on his back or trapped in the clinch for
the better part of two and a half rounds.

However, Escudero benefitted from a Herb Dean
restart midway through the third period, locked in a modified
guillotine choke and transitioned deftly to a north-south choke. In
trouble and with plenty of time left on the clock, Volkmann somehow
defended the hold and survived, riding the lead he had built to
that point to another win on the judges’ scorecards.

Nunes Outpoints Gamburyan

Nova Uniao standout Diego Nunes
recorded his fourth win in five outings, as he captured a unanimous
decision from “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 5 finalist Manny
Gamburyan in a preliminary featherweight matchup. All three
cageside judges saw it the same: 29-28 for Nunes (17-2, 2-1
UFC).

Nunes assaulted his Armenian foe’s legs mercilessly with
well-placed kicks and often answered his attempted takedowns with
knees to the gut. Gamburyan (11-7, 2-5 UFC) did his best work in
the second round, where he wobbled the Brazilian with a powerful
right hand, delivered a takedown and operated briefly from top
position.

However, Nunes was the superior standup fighter. His attack on
Gamburyan’s legs took a visible toll, leading to a third
consecutive defeat for the former WEC title contender.